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1 " The base is as strong as the foundation, the tree's trunk as sturdy as the depth it took root. And when we witness this the questions of past introspection could also be: When did certain reinforcements of that foundation get established?And why were there cracks to begin with?...that could take you so far back depending on the person, for that matter, any intelligent life-form, to make you ask:How could I compassionately hold anyone so against what I know I possibly once did myself? "
― James Emlund
2 " Reading, writing, listening to music, skipping rope, flying kites, taking long walks along the sea, hiking in the crisp mountain air, all serve a joint purpose: these self-initiated acts free us from the drudgery of life. These forms of physical and mental exercises release the mind to roam uninhibited, such collaborative types of mind and body actions take people away from their physical pains and emotional grievances. A reprieve from the crippling grind of sameness allows personal imagination to soar. Imagination, a form of dreaming, is inherently pleasant and restorative. It is within these moments of personal introspection stolen from the industry of surviving that humankind touches upon the absolute truth of life: that there must be something more to living then merely getting by; the fundamental human condition thirsts for a way to improve upon the vestment that shelters our self-absorbed lives. "
― , Dead Toad Scrolls
3 " I sleuth, you know. For a hobby. Harmless outlet for natural inquisitiveness, don't you see, which might otherwise strike inward and produce introspection an' suicide. Very natural, healthy pursuit -- not too strenuous, not too sedentary; trains and invigorates the mind. "
― Dorothy L. Sayers , Unnatural Death (Lord Peter Wimsey, #3)
4 " Alone in the car with my social life all before and behind me, I was suspended in the beautiful solitude of the open road, in a kind of introspection that only outdoor space generates, for inside and outside are more intertwined than the usual distinctions allow. The emotion stirred by the landscape is piercing, a joy close to pain when the blue is deepest on the horizon or the clouds are doing those spectacular fleeting things so much easier to recall than to describe. "
― Rebecca Solnit , Wanderlust: A History of Walking
5 " The question is why one should be so inwardly preoccupied at all. Why not reach out to others in love and solidarity or peer into the natural world for some glimmer of understanding? Why retreat into anxious introspection when, as Emerson might have said, there is a vast world outside to explore? Why spend so much time working on oneself when there is so much real work to be done? "
― Barbara Ehrenreich , Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America
6 " Listening to music, reading literature, writing, and extended periods of personal introspection provide four prongs of the incitements available to form a conscious and subconscious designation of self. Other potential incentives that contribute to self-identity include religion and cultural events as well as painting, sculpture, dance, films, newspapers, television, Internet surfing, web sites, and online message boards. "
7 " No one has direct access to your mind like you do. That's why introspection remains a valid technique even after the invention of brain scanners. "
8 " A writer needs solitude : moments that he can spend in introspection and in reflection. These moments make him pensive and thoughtful and help him write his thoughts with clarity. A life of devotion to one's passion gives us meaning to our life. "
9 " Expectations are nothing more than the rules we set, in order to maintain our ego and self esteem. What we seek from others is often that fulfillment of what we believe we require for happiness. However, many of us will raise the requirements so high that we can't even reach them or better yet, realize that we could find that expectation met by our own introspection and action. "
― Shannon L. Alder
10 " If, again, the most superficial introspection teaches the physiologist that his conscious life is dependent upon the mechanical adjustments of his body, and that inversely his body is subjected with certain limitations to his will, then it only remains for him to make one assumption more, namely, that this mutual interdependence between the spiritual and the material is itself also dependent on law, and he has discovered the bond by which the science of the matter and the science of consciousness are united into a single whole. "
― Samuel Butler , Unconscious Memory
11 " Reading, writing, and personal introspection will not protect us from hardship and suffering, but they might introduce us to critical thinking and expose us to what is good in humankind and beautiful in the world that we share with all of nature. Contemplative thought, especially that supplemented with reading literature and attempting to write our own replies to the echoing voices of writers whom preceded us provide us with the potentiality for change, the possibility of personal illumination that enables us to experience a heighted quality of life. "
12 " Thinking too much about the future, especially in terms of wants and desires, constricts us. First of all, it does little, if anything to achieve goals. Secondly, consider, that what you think you may want tomorrow may not actually be what you want tomorrow. You are ever-changing and constantly evolving. It’s OK to want better for the future, but don’t expect for the future. Just as introspection is very challenging, so is knowing what is in fact good or best for us and the path there. We may think we need to do things one way, when in fact, we may need to do them in a completely different way. "
13 " He accepted the deformity which had made life so hard for him; he knew that it had warped his character, but no he saw also that by reason of it he had acquired that power of introspection which had given him so much delight. Without it he would never have had his keen appreciation of beauty, his passion for art and literature, and his interest in the varied spectacle of life. […] Then he saw that normal was the rarest thing in the world. Everyone had some defect of body or of mind […] The only reasonable thing was to accept the good of men and be patient with their faults. "
― W. Somerset Maugham , Of Human Bondage
14 " The problem with introspection is that it has no end. "
― Philip K. Dick
15 " When it is imperative to make a vivid offering towards life then a simulated introspection for all possible dimensions may be endured to establish a relationship with external world and world within "
― Amit Gupta
16 " Success is not a distant dream,it is a reality for those who sweat to achieve it,enjoy sleepless nights, take calculative steps through the day,and with self introspection keeps it humble with a smile.Then success gets loud with the achiever's mouth shut,while the world celebrates one's victory. "
― Henrietta Newton Martin
17 " It seems that, without clarity and honesty, we don't progress. We just stay stuck in the same vicious cycle. But honesty without kindness makes us feel grim and mean, and pretty soon we start looking like we've been sucking on lemons. We become so caught up in introspection that we lose any contentment or gratitude we might have had. The sense of being irritated by ourselves and our lives and other people's idiosyncrasies becomes overwhelming. That's why there's so much emphasis on kindness. "
― Pema Chödrön
18 " Life is the constant process of self-creation. We constantly make and remake our personal version of the self. Personal introspection is critical to ascertain who we want to become by ascertaining what traits we wish to eradicate and what qualities we wish to embody. "
19 " Self-development requires direct action. Knowledge must precede action. The self’s relation to the world must be grounded in reality through ideas and thoughts. Self-reflection and introspection expands our appreciation of life. "
20 " Anger, resentment and disappointment, in most cases, can not exist in our lives without our expressed permission. An honest and sincere introspection will reveal that all three emotions are centered and rooted in self. They are self preserving reactions sprung to life by our inconveniently unmet expectations. Joy and contentment replaces these emotions when we genuinely put others before ourselves. ~Jason Versey "
― Jason Versey , A Walk with Prudence
